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Express bus service
An express bus service (also known as commuter bus service) is a bus service that is intended to run faster than normal bus services between the same two commuter points. Express buses operate on a faster schedule by not making as many stops as normal bus services and often taking quicker routes, such as along freeways. The fare on an express bus service may be higher than normal parallel services, for the quicker service. Many express buses require passengers to purchase tickets before boarding the bus, speeding up the service. In many cases, an express bus service is identified by a letter before or after the regular route number. For example in Sydney, the letters L (as in L90), E (as in E70) and X (as in 610X or X84). London There are only four express bus services in London. *12e (Coming Soon): Oxford Circus - Dulwich Library *29e (Coming Soon): Trafalgar Square - Enfield Town *607 (to be known as 207e): Shepherd's Bush - Uxbridge *X26: West Croydon - Heathrow Airport *X68: West Croydon - Russell Square *X140: Harrow Weald - Heathrow Airport Singapore Three main types of Express services exist. Full Day express services offer connections from housing estates to the City, or between housing estates. Limited-stop express services closely mirror their parent route but call at fewer bus stops along the way. Finally, CBD express services are the most numerous, connecting housing estates to the Central Business District (CBD) and operating only during the peak hours. Express services reduce travel time by travelling via the expressways or skipping bus stops along selected stretches of road. They charge higher fares due to the decreased catchment area and hence reduced total passenger loading compared to a non-express route. However, passengers are often willing to pay the higher fare for added convenience and reduced travel time. Previously, Express routes were limited to the 50_ and 51_ numbering series, but newer Express routes no longer follow this convention. Current Express Services Pros: The point-to-point nature of express routes provide convenience and encourage commuters to rely on them rather than taking a train, reducing commuters’ reliance on the rail network. For bus operators, the decreased run-time of Express routes translates to fewer buses being deployed compared to an ordinary route over the same distance. By carrying passengers over longer distances at a time, this reduces the strain of boarding and alighting activities at en route stops, which take up a lot of time especially during peak hours. Cons: While “Express” services incorporate express or limited-stop sectors, they may not offer significantly faster journey times, with Express services such as 854E duplicating their parent routes to a large extent but charge higher fares under the Express designation. Sometimes, commuters are forced to take Express services within their non-Express sectors as existing bus routes do not provide direct connections to their destination. For example, Express 506 offers the fastest route between Bedok Reservoir and Upper East Coast without transfers (prior to the launch of Bus Service 46), but alternative routes would require multiple transfers between other bus services. Definition of Express Among private transport operators, a service is deemed “Express” when it charges Express fares based on the distance-based Express fare structure. This definition does not extend to trunk routes which incorporate long express sectors along expressways (and occasionally cover longer express sectors than Express services). Many services plying the Tampines Expressway and Bukit Timah Expressway / Pan-Island Expressway corridors are trunk routes rather than designated Express routes. History Many express services existed in the 1990s that fell under the 5xx numbering series. As the earliest generation of express services, they complimented the MRT network by providing journeys with comparable/faster journey time by using expressways, many of which serve between the City and housing districts. Here is a list: Only the Red Arrow routes 502 and 518 survives till today. Many were withdrawn because of MRT rationalisation exercises (because MRT is faster) or renumbered to the local route due to the developments on it. Here is a current list of bus services and more will be added during the BSEP programme. Express routes resurfaced later when they introduced existing parallel routes, which duplicated existing trunk routes. These would operate during peak hours, calling at stops with high demand and skipping stops for faster point-to-point travel. While SBS Transit promoted it as Fast Forward services, SMRT and YourStudent referred to the ordinary Express services such as 188E, 854E and 963E. The newer generation of Express routes are newly designed routes intended to connect housing estates to the Central Business District (CBD), operating during the peak hour, such as 868, 971E and several more under the BSEP scheme such as 513, 850E, 951E and 982E. City Direct routes are an extension of the concept, contracting such express services to private bus operators. Finally, the latest generation of Express routes are limited-stop express bus services to the parent bus service, such as 147e, 12e and 851e which operates daily. Operating hours for these services will be reduced starting from February 2020, with the exception of 147e being withdrawn similar to Chinatown Direct CT28 and 43e was introduced as a peak hour express services.